AboutKC Expertise I can answer questions related to feline and canine diet including questions regarding ingredients, by-products, nutrients, raw diets, brand named products, etc. I can also answer questions related to pet health, behavior, grooming, and general animal management.
***Before asking a question, please read my past answers as they will more than likely answer your question:
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Cat-Food-3490/indexExp_83830.htm
*****I'm happy to announce a new forum*****
http://petfoods.freeforums.org
Experience I have done research on the relationship between feline diet and feline diabetes due to my personal experience in dealing with one of my own cats. I am a pet lover and always have numerous cats and dogs. I believe in feeding a high quality and by-product free diet. Diet alone cured my diabetic cat as well as either cured or significantly helped many others.
Education/Credentials Bachelor's Degree in Biological Sciences and years of
experience working as a Veterinary Technician
Question QUESTION: After many vet visits, it appears that my cat suffers from a food
intolerance. She was throwing up multiple times a day. She was checked for
everything at the vet's office including parasites, which came back negative.
Irritable bowl disease was mentioned, but I really feel like it is a food
intolerance. The vet gave her a special food with rabbit in it. The problem is
she absolutely hates it and will not even get near it. I switched it out with
deer, but she had the same reaction. I have tired mixing it in with other
things (tuna water, canned food, her regular food) just to get her used to it,
but she picks it out. I have tried so many different foods, but she is such a
picky eater! Do you know of any other food for intolerance or is there
anything I can cook for her at home? The food food the vet gave her was
Science Diet Brand. I think it was the smell that caused her not to eat it. As
soon as she smelled it, she left the room!
Thanks,
Lauren
ANSWER: Hi Lauren,
I am so glad that you found this site and asked me about this. I am all too familiar with cats who are sensitive to foods. Science Diet, among the other so called premium brands, are actually anything but that. Many many animals have reactions to the ingredients and most, sadly, go unnoticed. Please read my main AllExperts page for some brief info on commercial foods. There are also a few links there: http://www.allexperts.com/ep/3490-83830/Cat-Food/KC.htm
Your vet was right in telling you about the rabbit based foods...the protein in rabbit meat is quite different from other meats and is much more easily digested. However, Science Diet is certainly not a good premium food. If your cat vomits immediately after eating, and is vomiting a dry food in particular, get her off of that dry! Most commercial dry foods contain potentially harmful fillers and some pretty toxic, not to mention disgusting ingredients. Nature's Variety makes an excellent rabbit based canned cat food...it is truly premium, contains no by-products, fillers, or grains. You can either order it online or purchase it from an individual pet store...huge chains like PetSmart do not sell it...they only sell the cheapest commercial foods with the highest markup. Wellness also makes some great foods which I have all of my pets on. In addition, you can also feed raw, for the most sensitive of cats, but only if it is properly supplemented. If you want more information on brands, raw diet, supplements, or anything along that line, don't hesitate to ask. And, as a general rule, ONLY feed twice per day...cat's were not meant to 'graze' all day and it only contributes to intestinal problems and obesity, among other things.
Please read some of my past answers here, as you will find a lot of info on diet, food brands, and feeding schedules: http://en.allexperts.com/q/Cat-Food-3490/indexExp_83830.htm
In particular, check out the answers titled "fussy cat" and "sensitve stomach and needs tarter control (2 part answer)". Both of those contain a lot of information about food brands and dealing with cats who have specific problems, etc. There are also two articles on Nutro Brand food which gives more specifics on what foods NOT to buy and what to look for in premium foods. Plus, after reading all those you will understand why it might be hard to get her to eat another food and how to change her over to something different that she will eat.
I am very optimistic that by changing her diet, her problem will completely clear up in as little as a few days to two weeks. I've had cats with the same problem that were basically cured by diet alone, immediately. By changing to a truly premium brand you will also notice other differences too...and they aren't that much more expensive than brands like Science Diet. If however, after two weeks on a premium brand, she continues the vomiting, I would have lab work run, etc. to rule out an intestinal obstruction or other underlying problem. If a 'sensitive' stomach is to blame for this, it can soon be corrected...you have no idea just how many animals stay unhealthy and obviously sick due to food. Please keep me posted on her condition and feel free to reply to this if you have any further questions at all.
Hope this helps! :-)
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thanks for all your advice. I will definitely check out some of those other
sensitive stomach brands. I had always feed her Wellness brand dry food
until she started with the vomiting problem. I did something dumb 2 days
ago and gave her some grocery store brand canned food mixed with the
rabbit dry food just to see if that could get her eating the prescription diet
food. Well she picked around it and ate all the canned food. She threw up
yesterday (quite a long time after eating) and was feeling so bad all day
yesterday and again today. This exact thing happened when I was in class two
weeks ago, and the cats knocked down a bag of food she should not have
been eating. I'm sure they both gorged themselves. She threw up the day
after that and was lethargic for 2 days. She has not thrown up again since i
gave her the canned food, but she has been very lethargic and doesn't want
to eat anything. I have ground up the rabbit food in the blender mixed with
water and have squirted a little bit in her mouth along with plain water
through out the day. I was worried she would be
dehydrated from throwing up. She has had this spell before for a few days,
then on the third day or sooner, she is begging for food, running around, and
playing with the kitten. This is what led me to believe it is something in one
of her foods. I'm going to the locally owned pet store that sells Wellness to
see if I can get a better quality food for sensitive stomach. I'll try feeding her
canned before dry. I guess I'll keep her on the rabbit if that's easier to digest.
She did have some blood work done last visit to the vet. She said everything
looked very good, but her white blood count was very elevated. She said that
some of this could be accounted to stress, but it showed that there was an
infection or an irritation some where in her body. The vet had recommended
that I get an appointment with a specialist if this continues, and possibly an
endoscope. If she does have an idea of what's going on, she isn't letting me
in
on it. She doesn't seemed very concerned. To complicate matters, I adopted
a kitten (Amelia) several months ago. Corabella (sensitive stomach) started
throwing up a few days before I brought Amelia home. This wasn't out of the
ordinary for her to throw up, so I didn't know anything was wrong. Both vets
(the one in my hometown and the one where I'm in school) seemed to think it
was stress from the new kitten. I really don't think that's related at all
because they play and sleep on the couch together when Corabella is eating
and feeling good. I don't mind getting an endoscope done, but I would hate
to put her through that if its just the food that's making her sick. Thanks for
your advise on feeding them only 2x a day. Its going to be difficult switching
the spoiled kitten, but I understand why its better for them!
I had read online that if you feed a cat the same food for a long time they can
build up an intolerance to it? This didn't make too much since to me, but I
had been feeding her Wellness for 3 years in varied flavors. Not knowing any
better, I did let her graze through out the day. I hope she will like the
Nature's Variety canned better than that Science Diet junk!
Thanks again for all your great advise,
Lauren
ANSWER: Hi Lauren,
If she had gorged herself, to begin the vomiting episode, then it is certanily likely that she developed some degree of gastritis...her stomach and intestinal tract is probably irritated from the excess of food and the vomiting combined. This can take quite a few days to clear up and usually the best thing for gastritis/intestinal upset is to pick up all for for up to 24 hours initially, and even pick up water for 6 hours or so. Then, keep fresh water available at all times and only feed a.m. and p.m., a mild diet (like canned rabbit formula). If she has that sensitive of a stomach, the only twice a day feeding with really help. All of my cats that used to vomit intermittently, for no apparent reason, or have spells of gastritis, all cleared up on the premium foods and the twice a day feedings...I'm not sure if it was just the food alone or the limited to two a day meals that 'cured' it. A lot of cats, even with the premium foods, can only tolerate so much dry. So, if you notice her being sensitive to the dry, even in Wellness, then you might have to stick with canned since it is so much easier to digest. And no, they never build up a tolerance to certain foods and tend to be super picky, cats especially, lol, in particular if they have ever had the cheap stuff.
Hope this helps and I really hope that her problem clears up soon. I also LOVE the names of your cats! :-)
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Hi here is a follow up! Corabella was not showing any improvement at all.
My Mom came down to help me with her because it was so difficult trying to
take care of her and go to college classes. (She also came down because I
was sooo worried.) Corabella was loosing weight, and still not eating or
drinking. I was squirting water in her mouth with a syringe so she wouldn't
get dehydrated. I also ground up some of the rabbit food that I knew wouldn't
make her sick in the blinder with a little water and squirted that in her mouth
as well. We took her to a specialist here in Atlanta, GA. He looked her over
and said he would have to do an endoscope to tell anything. He said some
possibilities like some very scary cancers, or irritable bowl disease. Well,
after
several horrible hours waiting, he called to say that it looked very much like
irritable bowl disease, but he couldn't be sure until several days later when
the
biopsy came in. After more horrible waiting, the biopsy came back negative
for the cancers. Corabella was put on steroids, and her appetite returned
within a couple days. She gained back all of the lost weight with her healthy
steroid appetite! I talked to the vet once a week and according to her
progress, we weaned her (very slowly) of the steroids. She is now eating
Wellness brand food again, and since becoming well, she has become best
friends with the kitten (Amelia) I adopted prior to her sickness. The vet said
70% of cats that get this never have another problem with it. Even if
Corabella does, at least this time I'll know what it is!
Thank you so much for all your advice. It was sooo comforting to have some
knowledgeable advice from a very kind person during this difficult time!
Have a wonderful New Year,
Lauren
Answer Hi Lauren,
Thank you so much for sending an update on Corabella. I'm sorry to hear that she went though such a rough time. It's so wonderful that it wasn't something much more serious though! Hopefully she won't have any further flare ups from the irritable bowl disease.
